Not What Meets the Eye
by mari-doll
Summary: Professor Augustine Sycamore has only been at his job for two years when he gets sent a mysterious stone, shining with the colors of the rainbow, from his aunt. Determined to crack down on the mystery, Augustine dives deeper into kalos, discovering things not only about the region, but about himself, that he never knew was possible
1. Chapter 1

the next crash of thunder sent two heartbeats screeching.

a small boy, age nine, pressed against the lone glameow in his house, both of them scared out of their minds.

they were in the basement, pressed up against the wall opposite of the stairs. the boy had come down before the storm had really begun, finding himself trapped when the noise became unbearable, because surely it was worse upstairs. and it wasn't long after that the small, two-month-old glameow bounded down the stairs, found him, and tackled into him, also frightened by the weather.

and so the two sat, huddled against each other, while the clouds outside fought and growled. although it took awhile, the two eventually found themselves asleep.

the boy woke up to the glameow licking his cheek. in front of him, the carpeted staircase was lit up with the light streaming in. it was morning. and so the storm was over.

or so they thought.

glameow took to the stairs first, slipping up with a grace the young pokemon should not have possessed yet. the boy was a little hesitant, but followed nonetheless.

it was only when the boy was halfway up that he darted, taking the stairs two at a time, for the screech of young glameow had reached his ears.

he didn't have to search far. only a few yards away, glameow stood, crying out. beside her was the bodies of her parents. although the carpet was also a dark red, the color was printed on various spots of their clothing, making it impossible for the boy to think otherwise of the situation.

and so he covered his eyes and screamed.

13 years later

"August? Hey, August, hello?"

I snap my head up to the concerned look of my aunt. "Was I spacing? Sorry. Ahahaha."

She rocks her head, pressing two fingers to her forehead. "Seriously, August. It's been five years since you left and to this day i still have doubts on whether or not i should leave you alone."

i hold my hands up "oh, no no. don't trouble yourself with me. i'm doing great, really!"

"Oh, say, did you ever get those pokemon from that professor you had been talking about?"

my eyes light up. "yeah i did! you wanna see?"

she scoffs. "seriously august. you can be such a child at times."

"oh come on." i grab her hand, pulling her up. "they're right in the next room. i needed to check up on them anyways, so there's no harm."

"well, if you say so."

and so, in the next room, professor augustine -august for short- sycamore and leanna, his aunt, of kalos, come face-to-face with three pokeballs. each held a quite rare pokemon from the kanto region.

i pick up one of the balls, then hesitantly grab the other two, releasing all three pokemon at the same time. as my aunt stands in awe at their sudden appearance, my hand reaches back to a quite crowded desk, moving things aside until i find a clipboard with notes on the kanto pokemon, setting it on top of the mess in case i needed to jot something down.

then i raise a hand at the three pokemon. "hey guys."

they all turn away from leanna's gaze, calling out a greeting to me. i reach down and scratch one on the head.

"so", i say, still slightly on the ground. "this one is charmander." my hand motions to the orange-coated starter, bright green eyes glittering up at leanna as he raised a paw and called out a greeting to her as well. his tail swished from side-to-side as he got excited, but was still mindful of what was around that could catch fire with the flame on the end of his tail.

"and this is bulbasaur."

the little pokemon called out to leanna almost immediately, being the friendliest of the group. the bulb on her back opens just a tad to release vines, which would through the air until they were in front of leanna.

she cast a glance at me and i nod to her. "take it", i say.

so she does. she reaches up with one of her own hands towards the vines, and they wrap around that hand, and bulbasaur smiles again before retracting them.

"this last one is squirtle."

the blue pokemon raises her head a little, then a hand towards leanna, calling out to her as well.

leanna actually claps both hands together. "oh wait right there for just a moment august." with that, she left the room.

i look over to the pokemon, seeing their own curious glances match my own. but we didn't have to wait long. leanna returns with her camera, ushering us to look at her, 'non non, stay as you are', and snaps a shot before any protests could really begin to form.

she then crouches down, the camera still around her neck, in front of squirtle. the water pokemon reaches for my arm, being quite the cautious one, but didn't make any other moves.

leanna smiles a gentle smile, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a small silver chain.

"i was out shopping the other day and could not resist this necklace. although i knew it didn't suit me, i knew i would find a home for it eventually. and i think i have." she turns back towards squirtle, uncoiling the chain and opening her hand to reveal a metal piece that held up a gray crystal.

squirtle peers at it, eyes shining with wonder. i smil at her when she looked towards me, and gesture for leanna to slip it over.

once it was done, squirtle reaches out and touches the chain as if it was a foreign object, which, i guess it was. she lifts it up to grab ahold of the crystal, which was near the ground otherwise, saved by a few inches of empty space. her little paws turn it over and over before she carefully lets it drop and reaches out to hug leanna's leg.

the other two quickly crowded around squirtle to see her gift. while they were conversing, i helped leanna up.

"that was thoughtful."

she turns away. "oh, august. well, actually, i have something for you as well." leanna reaches back into her pocket, producing a rounded jewel that shone with nearly all the colors of the rainbow. my eyes widen in wonder.

"to tell the truth, i have no idea of what it is", she admits. "i was out with a team close to geosenge when we found it. none of them took an immediate interest, but then one suggested you, and i thought it'd be for the best to hand it over. but, now you have the responsibility to tell me exactly what it is when you find out." with that, she places it into my palm.

i take another moment to stare at it before putting it away. "well, thank you. i'll try and crack down on the mystery."

after that, she swung out in a hurry, proclaiming she had to pack for another expedition, being the teeming archaeologist she was. and soon i was left in the laboratory, checking up on all the pokemon.

squirtle seemed proud of her necklace, but never did she hesitate to let the other pokemon see or hold it. it was just in her nature to be that loving and kind.

a small bark made me turn, seeing fennekin looking up at me.

"hmm? you need something?" i crouch down to meet her eyes, only to have a puff of fire meet my face instead. i pull up and pat my cheek with my hand, dousing the flame as fennekin cackled on the ground. "always the troublemaker", i grumble.

a drop of rain lands on my head, making me flinch in response. when i look up, i could see dark rainclouds dotting the sky. i grimace and back up towards the door. "anyone wanna come in", i call out, for sure that they would be able to feel the raindrops now. but they all seemed content, so it was just me who slipped inside, wanting to escape the past.


	2. Chapter 2

p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""i just can't figure it out. i mean, it's been two weeks and i've found nothing."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"a hand lands on my shoulder. "just relax august. you'll figure it out."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""mm. well that might be a bit easy for you to say. you aren't the one looking into it."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""well, no, but i am inter-"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""hey, aren't you hot in that?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i glance over to my companion, all bundled up in what looked like thick dark green jeans, riding boots that cut off just below her knees, a maroon long-sleeve shirt and a white jacket going down to her elbows. to go along with that, she had her hair down for the first time in a long time, a bandana covering most of the top in its patchwork pattern. she turns to look at me with green-tinted eyes thanks to colored contacts. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""nope. i seem to be immune to hot weather. plus, how else would you expect me to walk out and not be noticed", she laughs off. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i reach out and grab a piece of her hair. "true. but this is a change."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she snatches it from me and continues walking. "better than to confuse them."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i hurry along behind her. "it's getting long, dianth-"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""shhh! don't call me that out here. do you want to get stormed?" with a few odd looks from passer-bys, she turns back to face away from me, dragging me along until we ended up in a small cafe./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""i really don't, not today. sorry di, guess this research is making me go over-the-top", i whisper back./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"we order coffee and sit down in the back, hands wrapped around the mugs./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""that's another thing", diantha says. "remember, you haven't been a pokemon professor for that lon- don't give me that look! sure, you've been doing research since i've been acting, but you only officially opened up your lab two years ago."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""same time you became champion", i note. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she waves it off. "that was a bit after. i came to the grand opening, didn't i?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""so you did . ."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""anyways. you might have documents and books, but it's nothing compared to what's out in other areas of kalos", she insists. "most of what you have is your own research, and that's not going to help you much. what you need are old documents. and i might be able to help you with that."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i nod, taking a sip of my drink. then i remembered something. "oh, wait . . wasn't korrina's grandfather into stones? do you think he would have information?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"diantha nods. "might. i'll check and see. oh, you know who else might know something? steven stone, the champion of hoenn."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i snap my fingers. "that's right! i forgot him and his studies."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""do you want me to get ahold of him as well?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""that's a lot of people for a busy person like yourself. why . . . don't i take korrina's grandfather? it might be easier for you to talk to a fellow champion."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she waves me off. "it might be easier for you to talk to a fellow researcher. but, fine, i'll do it. al least let me tell korrina that you're coming, though."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""and the documents?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""i'll see what i can find. and don't worry, i'll get someone like drasna to help me. she's into older stuff like this."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"right after she said those words, di's phone went off. she casts me a look before answering it, turning her face to the wall. "yes? oh, is it? well then, i guess i'll swing by . ."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i was quick to tune it out, instead thinking of how amazing a friend di was. we had both set out to pursue our careers at seventeen, aiming to achieve them at the same time. she had said she became champion of kalos after my lab opened up, but really, that opening day was the same as the release of her first movie to the general public in theaters. so she might have persuaded the producers to push back the date, and i might have had been in a rush when it could be pushed back no longer to push my own date up, but we still claimed it coincidence around others. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""august?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i snap out of it. "y-yeah?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she claps her hands together, face downcast in an apologetic look. "i'm so sorry but i've got to go check up on something. will you be fine getting back to the lab?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""yeah, of course. you go off and get done whatever you need to."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she stands and nods. "all right. i'll come back soon, you never showed me your new kanto pokemon. and i'll try to have everything ready. give me a day to contact korrina. bye!"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"she said all of that while walking towards the door, ending while pushing it open and walking out. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i take another sip before getting out my holocaster and bringing up an image of the rainbow-colored stone. finally. i might finally have some answers./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"once i step outside, my mood turns sour. the sky was overcast, even though the forecast had promised sunny weather all day. checking the news let me know that stormclouds were blowing over from down south, close to snowbelle. they'd be gone in a couple hours, but until then, lumiose was going to be hit with thunderstorms./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i groan, putting my hands in my face. then i straighten up, /spanspan style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"no/spanspan style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;", i tell myself, /spanspan style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"you'll make it home. you'll be fine./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"ten minutes later, i was still blocks away from the lab, and the light rain had given way to something a little harder, a bolt of lightning painted across the sky soon after. i bite my lip, stopping and looking to see what was around. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""professor? professor sycamore?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i turn towards the voice, finding a very tall man walking up towards me. "yes", i call out, a question./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""ah, so it is you." he walks slower now, which is unusual, it was raining after all./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""may i ask who you are?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"he nods. "sorry-"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"a crackle of thunder interrupts his words. i resume biting on my lip, eyes widening just long enough to make me think he saw, but if he did, he sure didn't look like it. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""this really isn't the ideal place, huh", the stranger muses. "ah, i know! why don't you come to my cafe? it's not very far, and it'll be dry there."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i nod, still a bit shaken up. "sounds good."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"and so he leads me back the way i had come, and into another square, then down a small entrance of said square. his cafe was apparently on the wall of the skinny entrance as he dipped into a door and gestured for me to follow./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"as hesitant as i had been, inside really wasn't so bad. good, even. it was themed red and dark grey, and warm, and not quite empty, which was good. i patter over to the counter, where the man was. he glances back at me before taking the drink that was offered to him by someone behind the counter. "would you like anything?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i shake my head and he motions me to sit on one of the barstools. except, these had to be the weirdest barstools i had ever seen. it was a cushioned seat, like any other, but then it had four fluffed-up platforms sticking out of its sides. despite it forcing me to sit with my legs criss-crossed, it was actually quite comfortable, seeing as though the whole thing was padded. the man smiles at me before beginning./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""so sorry to intrude, professor. allow me to now introduce myself. i am lysandre azett, founder of lysandre labs and creator of the holocaster."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i take a moment to process. "well then . . it is an honor to meet you, lysandre."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"he shakes his head. "no no, the honor is all mine, professor-"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"again, thunder interrupts his words. i glance around, trying my best to hide my discomfort. luckily, something takes care of that for me. piano music suddenly fills the air, coming from the grand piano stationed near the back of the cafe. a girl sat there, playing, with a boy on the edge of the seat, slowly rocking his head to the music. it was beautiful. more so, it was loud. /span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i eventually turn my gaze back to lysandre. "please, call me august."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"he nods. "alright. then, august, i have a favor to ask of you." he continues when i gesture for him to do so. "first, have you ever considered making a pokedex for the kalos region?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"it takes me a minute before i respond. "faintly, i guess i have. but with other things i'm currently working on, and new things that branch off of those projects, it just hasn't ever happened."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"lysandre nods. "then, how would you feel if me and lysandre labs helped you develop one? maybe even with holographic capabilities?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i sit up straighter. "a-are you serious? that . . would be fantastic! having someone else to help work on it would surely speed it up, plus give me space to work on other things. oh, but . ."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"he's quick to pick up on my newfound hesitance, setting down his drink. "is there an issue?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""well, it's just, i don't know how i feel about letting such a large-scale corporation help out. all the other pokedexes were hand-crafted by pokemon professors alone." /spanspan style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"including the man that just put his trust in me to take care of starters from his region. what would he think if he found out an outside company was developing a pokedex? surely it's my job alone./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""i understand where you are coming from, so let me make you a new proposal. what if it was just me? no company, no outside help at all, just the two of us?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""well, i think that would be a bit better. still, would you give me time to think about it?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""of course, pro-august", he replies. "here, let me give you my holocaster number."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"after it was done, a new thought dawned on me. "oh, what was that favor you wanted?"/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"he smiles. "i was hoping you would get someone to go out and complete the pokedex. maybe even a few of my associates, see. i have taken quite an interest in . . legends. and it would help to have more information, especially if that information was gathered from a pokedex."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"before i can reply, a ringing interrupts the piano music that was still going on. lysandre makes a grab for his holocaster, the device being the culprit, before bidding me farewell./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;""goodbye, august. i hope to hear from you soon."/span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"i nod and make my way to the door. surprisingly, the sky has cleared quite a bit. i guess the piano was louder than i had thought, because i didn't hear a thing from outside when it began. which was a relief./span/p  
p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;"span style="font-size: 15px; font-family: Arial; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"span id="docs-internal-guid-99676635-3589-3af3-fe87-66604f8346fc"and with that thought, i hurry home./span/span/p 


	3. Chapter 3

it was a quiet morning until the holocaster rang. as soon as i answer it, i jump, the screaming of the girl on the other end overwhelming me. apparently she was in a rush, because only the voice mode was on.

"HEY hey, august, so apparently you have kanto pokemon now? and really rare ones at that, hmm? you better be at the lab because i'm coming over right now to take pictures and DO YOU HEAR ME AUGUSTINE? YOU BETTER BE READY. i'll see you soon, okay? bye!"

the call ends and i set the holocaster back down, breathing out a sigh.

viola was a long-time friend, but she could be a handful. _plus, doesn't she have a gym to run_ , i think.

i swing myself up and walk towards the back of the lab, slipping out the door and into the cool morning air. immediately i'm met with a questioning tone of one of the pokemon.

"kie?"

looking down, i see it's just froakie, the kalos water starter. "why hello there. is something wrong?"

the pokemon shakes his head. then he looks back up at me and tips his head. "kie?"

my eyes twitch in frustration before i realize. "oh, me? i'm okay. it was just viola called to say she was, or is, coming, and it's only been a week since i met the new pokemon, and i'm not sure . . they'll take well to her picture-taking."

froakie shakes his head. then he bounds away, first to bulbasaur, saying something to her. she glances at me before replying with a smile, and froakie turns back to give me a thumbs-up. the same happens with charmander. however, when it was squirtle's turn to reply, she comes over to me instead, froakie bounding after her.

"yes, squirtle?"

she motions around her neck. of course. she wanted her necklace, the one from leanna. we had taken it off after that one day, so it wouldn't get damaged when she swam or battled, but it was only natural she would want it back.

"i'll go and grab it, okay?"

she nods to me and froakie lets out a sound of joy.

i smile at them both, quickly standing and going inside.

"AUGUSTINE I SWEAR IF YOU DON'T LET ME IN. I SWEAR."

oh boy. my feet carry me towards the door, and i open it in a hurry. i only barely catch viola as she barrels in, and she casts me a grateful glance before straightening up. "i will have you know people were starting to stare."

"maybe if you quieted your voice-"

"mayBE IF YOU-" she pauses, kicks the door closed, resumes, "answered the door the first time, i wouldn't have had to."

"sorry. i was in the back."

she claps her hands together. "oh! with the new pokemon?"

i nod. "yeah and-wait. your hair is up." i study her for a minute. "were you at the battle chateau."

"mhmm. me and grant were. that's how i found out about the pokemon. grant told me. apparently, grant got told by valerie, who got told by korrina, who found out while talking to diantha, that you got them in recently. and let me say, korrina was _very_ surprised to be talking to the champion. it must be because she's so young and all, i mean, sixteen isn't very old for a gym leader, but still, her family's been around forever, so you think she would've met diantha more than once already-"

"vi. i get it."

"oh, sorry, sorry! well, why don't you show me the pokemon?"

"sure." i lead her along to the back before remembering the necklace. "oh, let me grab something real quick. i turn and hurry up the stairs.

"i already have a camera, you know", she calls out teasingly.

"not that!"

"don't keep me waiting long!"

i shake my head, bounding around to my desk upstairs and fishing the necklace out of one of the drawers. viola immediately flocks toward me when i come down, and i hold it out to her.

"oh, august, it's so pretty", she beams. "who's is it?"

"squirtle's, actually. leanna gave it to her."

"ooooooh that's leanna for you! and it's going to look so gorgeous when i take snaps of it." she holds up her camera for emphasis. "now, let's go see!"

outside, the three had already assembled, looking up at the both of us. i bend down and hook the necklace over squirtle, then, thinking about it, loop it around once more, bringing the pendant up higher from the ground. she gives me a smile in return.

i grab viola by the shoulders and step forward. "viola, this is charmander, bulbasaur, and squirtle. guys, this is viola."

they all call out greetings and in return viola raises a hand in a small wave. "hi."

after leading us all over to a more grassy area, viola points to squirtle. "you first, okay?"

squirtle nods and steps forward, the other two coming back to stand beside me. i cross my arms as i watch viola work.

"now, i can't have you looking directly at the camera, but maybe you could look to the side? haha, a little more than that. don't worry, you'll see it in action when the other two have their turn. ah, there you go! now just hold still, annnd . ." she brings her camera up to her face, adjusting for a few moments before snapping several shots. "perfect! thank you, squirtle."

next was bulbasaur, whom she got to lie down on the grass, legs curled up into her body and eyes closed. squirtle let out a small noise of surprise upon seeing the bright light when viola snapped the shot.

and after was charmander. the two had trouble finding a position until a butterfly flitted past. charmander tried so hard to ignore it, but viola let out a little laugh and told him to go after it. she got quite a few shots of the fire-type chasing the bug.

lastly, she had them all come out. after a moment's hesitation, she makes me come out as well, having me sit and the three pokemon gather around, one on my head -not by choice, not really viola's either, but she thought it was cute, so charmander was allowed to stay- one on my shoulder, and one in my lap.

she presss a few buttons before sitting down and leaning the camera against one of her knees. "no flash, so you can all look straight ahead. mmk, aaand . . got it!"

a few more ended up happening. somehow, a shot happened with charmander jumping up from my lap, posed quite excellently with my head still in perfect view. another showed squirtle in my arms, necklace coming down to rest against the back of my hand. one showed them all in my arms, actually, which was surprising. there were a few more. my favorite ended up being the last viola showed me, lifting it up from across the table indoors.

"aww, look at this one!"

it was of me and squirtle. she was sitting on my shoulder, arms holding my head. her gaze was to the sky as mine head was leaned towards to the floor, eyes closed and mouth opening a laugh.

i reach out and snag it, looking at it up close. it really was a good one, which was why it was such a surprise to hear viola's next words.

"you keep it."

i look up. "what?"

"keep it. it's obvious you like it, and besides, i have plenty others. oh!" she reaches into her jean pockets and pulls out squirtle's necklace. "you told me to hold on to this, but i should give it back now."

i take it from her, nodding. "thank you. uh, for the picture, too."

"yeah, no problem", she waves me off. "if you want, i can send all these others to you as well."

"mmm, maybe just the ones of the pokemon. it'd be good for-"

"research, yes. got it." she stands up and starts gathering up all the photos. "well, i think i've wasted enough of your time."

"oh, well uh, there is one thing i wanted to talk to you about, if you can-"

"august dear, of course i can." she slips the photos into her bag and sits back down. "what's up?"

"i . . got a request from someone to, uhh, help me construct a pokedex."

"oh my god", she screams. "august that's great! so it's finally happening. wow, this is so exciting, oh wait! who's this mysterious partner, hmm?"

"well, he introduced himself as the guy who made the holocaster."

her eyes sparke. "oh? that reminds me. diantha met him the other day. didn't say anything, other than she did. so, i guess if you need a little leeway, you can say you have the champion on your side", she halfway jokes.

i nod. "i'll see what she says. she's supposed to come by soon anyways."

"ahh, because of the thing she told korrina?"

"no, that's . . a separate matter of the same issue. i'm looking for documents to help with a stone leanna gave me. di said she'd dig around for me."

"oh? what's this stone look like?"

"ah, it's . . wait. it might be in my pocket." i dig around, letting out a noise of victory when i manage to find it, and pull it out, passing it over to her.

her eyes widen. "this . . i've never seen anything like it." she looks up. "where'd leanna find it?"

"geosenge, apparently."

"hmm." she looks at it for a few more moments before handing it back. "well, let me be of help and ask alexa if she or her friends know anything. reporters cover a lot of stuff, y'know."

i let out a laugh. "right. that would be great, vi."

"i'm out then. for real this time." she says this while picking up her bag and standing up over-dramatically. "you know . . maybe i should just call you when you don't answer next time."

"assuming i have my holocaster on me."

"ugggh. i am going to walk out there and all those people are going to stare at me again."

i blink. "just let me take you home then."

"nonono it's already noon i have been in your presence long enough-"

"really vi, i don't mind."

she sighs. "well i suppose. thank you."

it was about an hour's drive. once at santalune, vi insisted on me first taking her to the museum. we stop there and she burst through the doors, me following soon after.

"i've got more pictures", vi proclaims, dragging out the last word.

the lady at the front desk smiles. "that's great, viola. colette is actually out right now, but if you leave them with me i'll be sure to deliver them to her."

viola happily obliges, then leads me along towards one of the walls where her pictures were hanging up. there, we find a surprise guest.

"oh", viola manages.

siebold turns towards the both of us, putting on a gentle smile. "hello there, viola. more splendid work of yours, these are. and professor, how nice to see you too."

"likewise."

at that moment, siebold's holocaster rings. he puts it close to his ear. "hello? oh, no sorry, i got sidetracked. i'll be there soon." he hangs up and nods towards up. "well, duty calls. i'll see the both of you around."

once he was out of earshot, i turn towards viola. "do you normally have elite four members looking at your works?"

"no, but it sure felt nice. he must be an appreciator of fine art", she declare.

just then, two kids come around the corner, chittering away. they glance over at us, putting a small dent in their conversation, and stand to view the work beside viola's.

"so this one is-"

i interrupt to move her out of the way. she wasn't always one of observation. and, just as i suspected, the two kids inched closer to vi's works.

"oh wow. i still get shivers when i see the vivillon one", one of them, a girl, whispers.

viola perks up at this.

the two talked for a few more moments before the girl peeks a glance at viola, and then, turns fully towards the both of us with a gasp. "y-you're vi-vio took these pictures, right?"

a faint blush rises up on vi's cheeks. "u-uh, yes."

"we come every chance we get to see if any new ones are up", she girl continues. "me and trevor here just adore your pieces."

it was at that point that the boy, trevor, happen to glance at me. his reaction was about the same as his companion. "wait, aren't you professor sycamore of lumiose?"

"righto", vi says before i get a word.

"oh wow. shauna, there are two famous people in front of us!"

"trevor, quit geeking out! they're probably busy. viola is still a gym leader, remember?"

shauna turns back towards us in a heartbeat. "it's really great to meet the two of you."

trevor nods. "really nice." to me, he says, "professor, i want you to know that you're a huge inspiration to me. when i get older, i hope to study pokemon as well!"

"what an aspiring goal. i wish you luck", i say.

"oh!" vi slaps her cheeks. "oh the gym! come on, you have to take me there so you can get back before nightfall."

"vi, it's only one-thirty." i said that, yet i still let her drag me along.

"bye kids", we both manage to call out at the same time.

at the gym, vi is quick to lead me back to her own personal room and dump her bag on a nearby table. then she spins towards me. "i have an idea", she announces.

"and what might this be?"

"that trevor kid, he's the perfect one to give a pokedex to! didn't you hear him? he wants to study pokemon, and surely he'd take up your offer if you asked him to help you complete it. it's the perfect plan!"

"it . . actually sounds good. i'll consider it."

"hmph, just remember i'm the one who thought of it, mkay?"

"gotcha."

right as i say that, the lights flicker out.

"well that's great", viola mutters.

i hear the sound of a pokeball opening then.

"vivi, would you use flash?"

the butterfly pokemon obliges, lighting up the room just barely in a dim glow. i go over and flip the lightswitch several times, but to no avail -it does nothing.

"august, i don't like this. we should-"

the lights turn back on, just like that. viola frowns, replacing her frightfulness for annoyance. "well. that happened."

"have you had problems like this before?"

she shakes her head. "but hey, i'll be fine. i have vivi, after all." she reaches out and hugs her pokemon. "it's you who should be concerned. if power surges are happening, it probably won't be easy to drive back."

"i'll be fine."

"still, you might call me when you're home."

"deal." i move towards the door. "i'll go, then. bye vi."

"bye august!"

luckily, everything was peaceful for the rest of that day. i reassured viola that i was perfectly fine upon returning home, and that there was plenty left in the day to do other things yes, and that sure i would still like those pictures.

after that, everything went smoothly. it wasn't until a few days later, when i made a decision about the pokedex, that i placed a call and the gears began to turn.

"i am so glad that you've agreed to this, professor. here, let me show you some rough designs i've come up with."

"just august is fine."

"right."

we were both at the lab, sitting in a white-walled room with a thick table near the center. squirtle had managed to wander in and now sat at my feet.

lysandre pulls out three blueprints and hands them to me. i lay them out, glancing over each one before taking a more in-depth look. after a few minutes, i look up.

"well", he prompts me.

"i think . . they need to be easier to use."

"easier?"

"more oversimplified. like, umm . ." i stand, making a grab for sheets on a nearby table pressed against a wall. my eyes scan through them before i pluck a single one out, laying it on the table.

"see, what i had originally thought was for it to be a screen and a case. when you point it at a pokemon, the top half of the case would slide upwards, revealing the screen as it scans the pokemon."

"ah, how brilliant!" lysandre brings the paper closer to him. "though i see room for improvement, i do quite love this. it's just as you implied, too, the easier it is to use, the better." he taps the paper. "how would you feel if i produce the screen? i can make it light, holographic, easy to read, as well as weather-resistant, should a situation call for it. you can even provide all the layouts for entries for me, if you so wish."

"that sounds great, actually. i would like that", i say, reaching down to scratch squirtle's head. "if you can give me five days, i'm sure i can have the prototype case done."

"woah woah. it might take me a bit longer. plus, if you're serious about those layouts, you might prioritize those first."

"ahh, right." i bring a hand up to my head. sometimes i forgot normal people couldn't function with little sleep and a determined will. "well then, how about . . two weeks, we meet back here and discuss progress?"

he nods. "that sounds good." after gathering the blueprints, he stands and once again taps my own. "send me a copy, would you?"

"will do."

"you have a good day, pro-august."

"you as well."

and that was pretty much the start of two things. one was, obviously, the building of the kalos pokedex. the other will come to light later on, but i bet you won't be too surprised when it begins to take form.


	4. Chapter 4

"yeah i met him. he was . . interesting. kept spouting some nonsense about not aging. i'm not sure i would trust him if i were you."

"well . . i sort of already made the deal, di."

i could hear her sigh from the other end. "fine. just promise to be careful. you're heading to shalour today, right?"

"yep."

"hmm . . . looks like it's supposed to be clear skies all day around there. still, if you need to talk to someone, just give me a call."

"will do."

"oh, and i think i might have found a few things on the stone. i'll keep looking, but i should be able to swing by tomorrow and show you what i've found so far."

"sounds good, di. enjoy your day."

you as well, august. be careful."

"will do." with that, i end the call and stand up.

out of all the pokemon that i had at the lab, squirtle was the one who had wanted to come with me. so i had her pokeball in one pocket of my labcoat, and the rainbow stone in the other.

it was quite a drive to shalour, but not too terribly long. once there, i release squirtle, figuring she would enjoy the shoreline. of course, she takes off her necklace and secures it with me before wandering off.

i move forward in the sand, towards the oddly-constructed tower of mastery ahead. as well as being the home of both korrina cetrillo and gurkinn cetrillo, her grandfather, it also functioned as the shalour gym.

squirtle was, of course, very mindful to where i was. so when i was at the stone footsteps leading up to the tower, she wasn't far behind, approaching with just a touch of wavering caution.

we both take to the stairs and i very lightly rap on the door. it only takes a moment, with what sounds like a crash inside, for the door to come open just a tad, revealing the face of korrina cetrillo, grey eyes shining and blonde hair falling down her shoulders. "yes",she whispers, just barely audible.

"hi, i'm professor sycamore. i believe diantha told you i was coming?"

the girl of sixteen looks me up and down before glaring at me. it soon breaks, and a tight smile appears on her face. "o-of course. you . ." her voice breaks when she catches sight of squirtle. "is that . . . the kanto pokemon?" her voice was slightly higher when she said this.

"it is." i crouch down. "this little one's name is squirtle."

"oh . ." she shakes her head lightly. "anyways, you come in." with those words, she slightly thrust the door open and quickly walked inside.

my deduction was that she was probably sick, hence why her voice was quiet and her patience oddly thin. granted, i had never met the young gym leader before. maybe this was how she always was.

inside, the architecture was a gorgeous masterpiece. my feet lead me slowly down the long hallway and into an open area, a small table in the center and a looping staircase starting at one side of the wall. a few tall windows showed the ocean on each side of the room. korrina sat at one side of the table, so, out of respect, i move to the other side.

she looks at me with an odd gaze for a few moments before turning away.

"korrina, allow me to formally introduce myself. i am august-t sycamore, a researcher here in kalos." i was about to say my first name in full, but ultimately decided against it. "it's a shame that i've never had the pleasure of meeting you before. i don't think there has ever been such a young gym leader in kalos, and i believe you hold much promise."

"you don't think i've already released some of that promise?"

"well, of course, dear-"

"don't call my dear. korrina is fine."

i blink. "then, korrina, you are sixteen and a gym leader. that takes talent. what i meant was, you might grow to be something bigger than a gym leader as you get older and stronger."

"oh." she turns her head away. "that's nice of you."

i feel a nudge on my side and turn to see squirtle gesturing to her neck. with a nod i reach into my pocket and pull out her prized possession, wrapping it around a single time before she tottered off to the other side of the table, holding up the crystal for korrina to see.

the girl raises an eyebrow me but, at my shrug, bent down just a little to look at it. "it's very pretty", she notes. "is it yours?" this was directed at the water pokemon, who nods to her in return. "huh."

she looks up at me. " . . squirtle, right?" at my nod, she turns and puts up a small smile for the pokemon. "hey there squirtle. my name's korrina."

a smile grows on the water-type's face. she lets out a sound of happiness and sticks out her hand, which korrina shakes, before coming back towards me, still smiling.

i clap my hands together. "ah, i suppose i should show you what it is i came here for." my hand slips inside my pocket and cups around the stone. i bring it out and towards korrina, but she leans back, gesturing instead to the table. so i set it down there and pull my hand away.

i see korrina's eyes widen out of the corner of my vision. "my aunt found it close to geosenge", i tell her. "she had wanted me to figure out its mystery, but i've been going at it for quite a while with no results. would-"

"grandfather isn't here", korrina mutters. then, a bit louder, "grandfather isn't here. i'm sorry. i will let you know when he returns, but i cannot help you until he does." she stands up, gesturing towards the door. "please."

i stand up as well, taken aback more than i was when i first met her, and snatch up the stone before quickly walking towards the door, squirtle at my heels. once there, i open it and take a couple of steps down, looking back, with my hand still on the door. korrina approaches with an air of caution.

"well, it was very nice to me-"

before i could finish, she had reached out and shut the door. just like that.

i look down at squirtle, who looks up at me, still smiling, and sigh. that had clearly gone nowhere. guess all i was left to do was draw up more layouts for lysandre and await diantha's visit the next day.

it was quite an elaborate visit.

for starters, she brought me flowers. not many, four at most, but still, _flowers._ not knowing exactly what to do, and considering i had no vases, i ended up slipping them to bulbasaur, who took them happily.

diantha sits down in the seat viola had occupied not long ago and takes out a folder. it slides across the table towards me, and i open it just a bit to see photocopies of yellowed documents.

"i appreciate this, di."

"don't mention it. i'll try and find more. and see about steven. how was it with gurkinn?"

oh. that. "well, uh . ." i press a few fingers to my forehead. "he actually wasn't there. i'll have to go by at a later date."

"did korrina at least know anything?"

"i . . showed it to her, but all she did was call it pretty." not technically a lie, but not the whole truth, either. but i couldn't help it. i knew korrina was a good kid, and a good gym leader. i couldn't talk poorly of her in front of the woman in charge of the gym leaders.

di's eyes narrow just a bit, but she didn't push the issue any further. "all right. what about the pokedex? how are things going with that?"

now that was something i could talk about. "absolutely great. here, i'll show you -i already have a sort-of model." i say this while scrambling up and moving around the lab to the white-walled room, where i grab a cardboard contraption and hurry back to diantha. she's now standing, arms crossed.

"so", i begin, holding it out. "the base design is a screen protected by two pieces of a case, two pieces meaning they can move around." i turn and hold it up parallel to froakie, who is in the next room over, then take my hand and slide the top half of the cardboard up, revealing a thinner piece underneath.

"once you point it at a pokemon, this piece will slide up and the screen begins detecting things. things like possible type, height, nature. and it also stores the image of the pokemon once captured."

"very impressive. so i'm taking a guess, but is lysandre the one working on the screen?"

"right on." i close the model and lie it on a counter. "i'm so excited, di. i can't believe this is happening."

"i almost can't either. it's been so long since you first became a professor. but somewhere . . i think i've always had faith that it would happen."

"it hasn't been that long", i mumble.

she lets out a small laugh. "right, only two years. oh, i almost forgot. vi said she took pictures of the kanto pokemon? would you let me see them?"

"the pictures or the pokemon?"

"mmmmm . . both. but pictures first."

i nod. "sure. they're upstairs. oh, well . . i guess some are downstairs too."

"make up your mind, august."

"hey, i'm sorry! i have notes about the pokemon downstairs and pictures of every pokemon vi has captured upstairs. once i get done down here, they go up there."

she raises an eyebrow. "you've been doing that and working on the pokedex _and_ finding out about the stone? august, how are you functioning?" she leans closer. "wait, are those bags under your eyes?"

"coffee, m'dear", i say with a grin. "lots of espresso. lots of sugar. let's go upstairs, tis lighter."

she scoffs. "you're going to crash eventually, i hope you know that." she says this, yet she still follows me to an actually well-lit-by-natural-light room upstairs.

i turn towards a bookshelf and, after a few moments, grab a folder and lie it down on the desk, casually flipping through to the back with di looking over my shoulder.

i find the first one of squirtle and back away, letting her look.

she takes quite an interest before flipping over to the next one. i can see her eyes moving across every detail, then coming back to the pokemon, a soft smile on her face when she does. when she turns to the next, she lets out a little laugh and glances at me.

"august, this is cute."

i step closer, seeing it's the one of me and squirtle, her perched on my shoulder. "vi thought so too. she let me have it right then and there, when we were looking over them."

"and a smart choice to take it." she taps it a few times. "you really get along with this one, don't you."

"squirtle?" i take a moment to think. "well, i like to think that i get along with all of them, but i guess i'm the closest to squirtle, yeah."

she suddenly changes topic. "vi says she had this brilliant idea about the pokedex. mind enlightening me?"

"mmm we . . met a couple kids at the museum in santalune. one said he was really interested in being a pokemon professor, like me. vi thought he would be the perfect one to give a pokedex to."

"i guess that seems logical", she muses. "but aren't you responsible for sending off trainers with pokemon too? did he seem interested in that?"

"well . ." i hadn't thought of that. "i guess he never specifically talked about wanting to be a trainer, no. but he's only a possibility. hopefully the list will grow, so if some don't work, there will be back-ups."

"yes, that's well thought out. august?"

i had taken a moment to lean against the desk, using my hand to do so, and ended up closing my eyes. at my name, i shot up. "y-yes?"

she shakes her head. "you need sleep. seriously. go get in bed and i'll take care of the pokemon. when i have to leave i'll get you up."

"deal", i mumble, stumbling towards the door. "thanks, di."

she shakes her head again, but a smile is on her face. "no problem", she murmurs once i'm gone.

it was fairly quick to fall asleep, and when i wake, i find that the sunlight coming in has taken on a darker shade.

downstairs, i don't find diantha immediately. it takes going through all the rooms before i go outside and find her sitting against a tree, the other pokemon elsewhere. i make a move to go towards her when a movement stops me.

a small chespin carefully comes out of the bushes by diantha. the grass-type cautiously sniffs the air before approaching her side very slowly. it shocks me.

this is the last of the batch of kalos starters, and i had only seen him a couple times, considering he was terribly shy. it was indeed an unusual sight to see him out, but it made my heart warm nonetheless.

chespin carefully approached diantha's hand and sat beside it, looking up at her. it was almost a shame she wasn't awake. she would certainly be disappointed when she awoke to find out she could've met the only pokemon here that was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to even get a glimpse of.

chespin puts his paw on diantha's hand and smiles. it was this movement that caused her to stir, fluttering open her eyes. chespin hadn't taken notice.

i stand there, watching her, as she moves her other hand towards chespin, who had now curled up where he was. di's hand touched down on the pokemon's head and he sprang up, backing away a few steps. diantha cast him a gentle smile and he calmed down just a little, but still moved to another area.

"di", i call out.

she turns to look at me, sees i'm there and awake, and gets up herself. "pokemon are all good", she calls out.

"says the girl who was asleep!"

"it wasn't for very long!"

she's in front of me now and i smile down at her. "fine. i forgive you."

"i should go, though", she mumbles. "it is getting late. um, keep me up-to-date with what's on those papers, okay?"

"will do."


	5. Chapter 5

a full week had passed since me and lysandre had met to discuss the pokedex. since then, i had sent all the layouts and designs i had come up with to him, as well as gotten the outer layer of the bottom case built.

now it was time to find out about the stone.

di had since contacted me only to say that steven was out of hoenn, which really august shouldn't surprise us, i mean, he is a researcher, and vi had called letting me know alexa hadn't heard anything, but would keep an eye open.

i had skipped over the first few, as all they talked about were stones of two colors, not of multiple, like i possessed.

so now the last of the ones was in front of me. i was getting antsy, not having found anything in the others. i didn't really want to call di and tell her her efforts so far had been unhelpful, but i might have to.

"squirt?"

i look down to see squirtle at the foot of the table. she points to her neck and i slide my glasses off, standing up to go fetch her necklace.

"you really like this, don't you", i ask once it's secured on her. in return, she nods at me. "be careful", i call as she goes away.

and now, it was back to the room, back to sitting in the chair, glasses on, head bent forward, document in front of me.

already, i could see this was the worst out of them all. the words were so weathered in some places that it was impossible to make out what the letters once were. plus, it was only half-full, the other half being nearly completely blank. still, i would try my best.

it began with a space, where a word once was, and then the words, 'had made quite the discovery today'.

i reached my hand over to the pencil i had and jotted the words down onto paper lying around.

'it . . hunk of stone . . shone in the sun . . colors of the rainbow-'

i paused, reading over that last bit, pencil poised to jot it down. then i read it again. still there. rainbow. a rainbow stone piece. this was it. it had to be.

'investigation was held . . high levels . .'

the words were indistinguishable. i glance up at the stone, sitting on the table, then back at the words. high levels of what? that had to be important. instead of leaving it blank, i wrote down a question mark on the notebook paper. it'd be up to me to figure it out.

' . . kept a shard . . next day . . talks about how . . reacted with his . . saur . . with him . . glowed . . othing else'

reacted? i again look up at the stone. the document said it glowed, but that was all that happened. still, it sounded like the man had a pokemon with him when it happened.

'found . . nother hunk . . this one more clear and green and red. again, . . home with . .rainbow . . showed up . . proclaiming a miracle . . vena . . both stones . . called . . mega evolution and . .'

my eyes widen at those last words. mega . . evolution? i dropped the pencil, leaning over even more to read the last words. there was no mistaking. that was this so-called miracle that had happened. and yet . . that was it. it ended on an open sentence, the rest impossible to make out.

i was tempted to call diantha right then and there and ask her where she found this was, if there were any more copies, but something stopped me. this one mentioned a stone with only a few colors. and to go along, it also talked about the rainbow stone, especially in those last few lines, saying they were both taken home when the miracle happened.

i jot a note down and dig around for the first few papers. once i have them, i scan over them once again, suddenly finding value in their words. they all mentioned stones with a few colors, except it talked about a glow happening when in the presence of a pokemon.

i sit back for a few moments, taking my glasses off and rubbing my temples. this was it. this was a breakthrough. somehow, this miracle called mega evolution took place with the rainbow stone and the three-colored stone reacting with the trainer and pokemon. but those words, mega evolution. what exactly did they mean?

"let me read these back to you: discoveries about big chunks of stone, miracles taking place with a stone, and . . mega evolution?"

"yeah, that's perfect."

"what exactly is this for, august?"

"i'll tell you once i find out. just know that those papers you gave me were very, very helpful."

" . . okay, i'm trusting you on this. any news from korrina?"

"no, nothing so far."

"maybe you should let me contact gurkinn directly. it'd save you and her both a lot of trouble. besides, i'm sure wherever he is, if i ask him to meet with the champion, he won't refuse."

"you shouldn't throw your weight around for my sake."

"who says i won't be there? i'm interested now. let me see what i can do, please?"

"sure, then. just don't push it."

"you flatter me august. now get back to the pokedex."

"yes ma'am."


	6. Chapter 6

the two week mark was done and over.

after spending an hour hooking the screen up to the two cases, i brought in froakie for the demonstration, knowing he usually wouldn't mind anything that went on.

now, froakie was on the table, i was in front of him, pokedex in hand, and lysandre was a few feet away.

i have to admit i was a bit nervous. the pokedex might have looked impressive, but if it didn't work, then it was all for nothing. with a carefully-measured breath, i lift the dex up and hold it out in front of froakie, who looked up with mild interest.

lights on the sides immediately begin flashing, and the top case opens to reveal the screen, which had a loading circle looping around on it. after a few moments, it showed froakie through the screen, and the sound of a picture being taken was heard.

i let out a short breath and look back at lysandre, who stepped forward.

when i look back at the dex, words filled the bottom half of the screen, stating froakie was my pokemon -we had registered the dex under my name beforehand- and showing the type, height, and weight. once more loading circles gave way to words, i could see that it also displayed a number, 007. this was another relief. looks like the list i had sent over to lysandre, based on lists from other regions, with region starters being at the top of the list, had been quite nicely added.

i tapped on an 'x' on the corner screen, moving away from froakie, and a numbered list was brought up, froakie's name being the only one listed.

"this . . it's perfect." i look over at lysandre. "it's absolutely perfect. i can't believe it! this-this is the first kalos pokedex. it's actually happening. it's actually . ." i stop, realizing i'm on the verge of tears. "thank you."

"the pleasure is all mine, august. but there still is another thing we might test." at my beckoning, he explains, first letting out one of his own pokemon, a murkrow. "what about seeing if the scan works with a pokemon that isn't yours?"

i nod, moving the dex so that it was pointed upward at murkrow. immediately, the list disappears, replaced by the loading circle. it takes a bit longer, but eventually, murkrow is visible, and what looks like an estimated height and type appear. i look up at lysandre. "is murkrow 1'09" and a dark type?"

he nods.

"it works, then." my eyes move back to the screen. "amazing. truly, truly amazing."

"and all in part to you. it was your design, after all. i just helped with mechanics."

i shake my head. "but i truly appreciate your help."

lysandre returns murkrow. "what do you say we make two more? after doing it once, it should be easier the second time around."

i nod. "that actually sounds great. until then, would you mind if i held onto this?"

"consider it yours. how does . . eight days sound?"

i think for a moment before replying. "that should be fine. thanks again for your help. i'll see you around."

"you as well, august."

"well it looks amazing, but does it work?"

"he wouldn't've called us over here if it didn't."

"true. true."

i wait for the two of them to stop before holding the pokedex out first to diantha. "just hold it up to face one of the pokemon. and thank you, vi."

viola makes a face before turning to lean over diantha's shoulder.

at the same moment, di lifts the device up and points it at an azurill. in a few moments, both their faces hold shocked expressions and they look up at me.

"this is amazing!"

"how did this happen?"

"well, it's in part lysandre's help", i tell them.

"huh", di began, "i guess i judged him wrong."

"so is this the final version", vi asks.

i nod to her. "yep. i'm already working on parts for two more, which should be finished by next week."

"oh, then that's perfect", di says. "we're meeting gurkinn tomorrow, and should be back in a couple days' time. plenty of time to finish the two pokedexes, right?"

"yeah, that should be fine."

"awww no fair! i wanna go and solve the mystery of the stone too", vi pouts.

"you do have a gym to keep up", i point out.

she turns away from me, arms crossed. "i know, i know."

"there is another thing i have to tell the both of you." they perk up. "it's . . about those documents you gave me, di. i managed to figure something out about the stone." they both immediately step closer, and so i begin.

"one of them talked about what seemed to be a team of people digging up a big piece of rainbow-colored stone. a person in the team took a shard of the stone home with him and his venusaur, and it talked about the shard glowing. next, the team found a tri-colored piece of stone, which the same man took home with his pokemon. apparently, he came back the next day proclaiming a miracle called mega evolution had occurred that night, with both the rainbow and tri-colored shards of stone assisting."

di looks intrigued while vi troubled. then, vi taps her head.

"of course! i've heard of mega evolution before. alexa got an interview with gurkinn, and he mentioned it to her, although he didn't tell her what it was . ."

"guess it's a good thing we're going to see him", di muses.

viola reaches out and grabs the pokedex from di, looking at it closely in her hands. "have . . you thought about what i said about trevor? you know, i met him again just the other day. he really liked the pictures i took of your kanto pokemon. and i think he's a good enough kid. smart, too", she murmurs.

"oh? i never heard about this."

"guess i. . forgot to mention it", i say. to viola, "i have a bit. and i think he is a good choice. with this dex cleared out, i should have three in a week. surely i can find two more by then."

vi had been about to say something when her holocaster began ringing. she sighs before going inside and answering it, talking to a head-and-shoulders holographic form of a person.

"i'm her ride, so . ."

i nod to di. "of course. that's pretty much all i had today."

"how's squirtle?"

"squir . . ? uh." i turn, looking over my shoulder and spotting the water pokemon. "good, i guess."

she smiles. "that's good. are you taking her with us tomorrow?"

"i guess i can."

"then do."

"hey di, we have to go", viola calls out. "i've got a challenger, apparently. bye august!"

di nods to me. "gotta run. see you tomorrow."

"bye."

as they leave, i turn and look at squirtle again. she was lying on the grass, having tired herself out. was there a hidden meaning in di's words, or was i overlooking it . . ?

i guess i would find out tomorrow.

"so tell me again why he's all the way in ambrette?"

"didn't say. my guess would be visiting the aquarium with his granddaughter, though."

i perk up. "korrina?" if she was with gurkinn, why hadn't she called? well, then again, she had said she would when he returned to shalour.

"no. his other granddaughter. the one from johto."

"oh." only a slight disappointment set in. it wasn't like i was looking forward to talking with korrina again, with all her shaky awkwardness. or, maybe she had just been sick?

"you brought the stone?"

"yeah. and squirtle", i add, after a moment.

"good. i brought gardevoir."

"that all?"

"would i need more?"

"good point."

we arrived in ambrette just as the sun was setting, which, apparently, was the perfect time to check into hotel rooms. di slipped me my card key, told me not to sleep too long, and went off to her own room for the night.

i let squirtle out before i went to sleep, and she seemed quite happy about it. i'd like to think she slept peacefully the whole night, but truthfully, i couldn't say for sure. i didn't.

a sharp, loud noise shook me swiftly from my slumber, jerking my head up. it only took a moment to locate the source at my holocaster. a glance at the clock showed the time to be three a.m. who would be calling this late?

i rub my eyes before reaching out and hitting a button, bringing up a holographic image of the last person i expected to have call -lysandre.

"hello august. you're looking well."

i shake my head. "do you know what time it is?"

he looks disheveled and quickly checks his watch. "oh. my apologies, i didn't realize it was so late."

"or so early", i muttered. then, louder, "what is it you need?" i might have been tired and snappy, but really, i was a little joyful. there was another person out there that got so into something that they didn't notice how much time had gone by. of course, i noticed this only because he looked as inhumanely-perfect as he always did, even at three in the morning.

"i just wanted to let you know i have selected the three who will obtain the pokedexes."

and that crashed my mood. "the . . wh . ."

"are you okay, august?"

"y-yeah, i'm fine. tell you what: i will consider those three and give you a definite answer once the eight days are fully up.

his eyes narrow just a bit. "alright."

"yeah okay well it's la-early i'll talk to you some other time. mkay? bye." and with that, i reach out and end the call, slumping back in the bed. already selected. was he serious?

before i could think about it more, sleep washed over me.

i was actually up before diantha, but the only reason being because squirtle had insisted on going downstairs.

i had just finished my coffee when she made her way towards me from across the room, two others tagging along.

she comes to stand beside me and gestures to the two. "august, this is percy cetrillo and tiara cetrillo. percy, tiara, this is professor augustine sycamore." to me, she mutters, "tiara is the one i mentioned before."

"it's nice to meet you, professor", percy, the honey-haired one, says. she pokes tiara in the side and her younger family member follows suit.

"yeah, it's nice to meet you! say, do you know who the prettiest kalos pokemon is?"

i furrow my eyebrows. "i . . can't say i do. really, i don't think i've seen all kalos pokemon."

tiara nods. "well, that's fine then. but now that we've met, you have to let me know if you do! just remember, it has to be a strong -a really strong- pokemon that gets along with all other pokemon. that's what will make it the prettiest."

"i like this one", di whispers to me. i nod back to her, then bend down to meet tiara's eyes. "it's a deal."

"gamma, or, grandfather, actually is at the glittering caves. he said to send you there", percy says.

"well, thank you for telling us", di replies. to me, "shall we go?"

i nod and stand. "maybe we'll run into the two of you again.

they both nod. "we'll be waiting", tiara calls out.

the glittering caves weren't a far walk by any means. i let squirtle out because of it, and she thanked me by staying within eyesight.

when we reached the entrance, squirtle kept close. already, i could see bits of green and blue crystals lining the walls ahead.

di looks around before turning to me. "well, i guess they never actually said where he was directly. perhaps he's inside?"

i nod. "let's find out."

even with the blue and green lights illuminating the cave mildly, i knew it could get dangerous. the sooner we found gurkinn, the better.

a noise comes from our left. i glance over at di before walking in that direction, her at my heels. suddenly, a light shines in our eyes.

"oh? you're not back-up. who are you?"

the light is lowered to reveal two men in orange suits. one was holding the flashlight while the other was gathering up quite a few half-dug-up fossils. they looked like they had been buried for safekeeping.

"are you . . stealing those", i ask.

the one with the fossils quickly stands. "n-no. maybe."

"we're team flare -we can do whatever we want", the one with the flashlight says. "but enough of that. what are you doing in here? no one is allowed in here." to prove his point, he takes out a pokeball and produces a houndour. "don't make me make you leave, now."

i back up a step, immediately focusing on squirtle, who was behind me. but before i could do anything, diantha puts her arm out in front of me, stepping forward. she quickly sends out gardevoir. "i think you should leave those", she says in a low voice.

"oh, shit man, it's the champion!"

"serious? nah, it can't be."

"i'm telling you. look at that hair. and that gardevoir."

the light temporarily blinds the both of us once again.

"it is the champion. let's just get out of here!"

"right behind you, man!"

i cast di a wary glance, but hers is hard and determined. "quick", she says, "let's go after them."

so that's how we wound up blindly running through the cave, the only thing saving us from bumping into walls was the glow of the flashlight from up ahead. but soon, it flickers off, and i hear di come to a stop.

"can you find them", i hear her ask gardevoir.

before an answer could be made, a loud ping and falling of gravel came from our right. di looks back at me for a second before darting forward, and i follow quickly.

the source was, however, not what we expected. in the next bigger portion, crystals lined all sides of the walls, nearly completely illuminating the room. gurkinn cetrillo stood off to one side, going at it with a bare piece of the wall, a pick-axe in hand. he looks up as we make our entrance.

"oh. so you've made it. i see you've found my fossils as well."

we both whip around, expecting the men, but instead find squirtle, arms full with the fossils.

"guess they dropped them", di mutters as she reaches down to take them from squirtle, who accepts graciously.

in all the chaos, i hadn't even considered squirtle. had she gotten far behind? she must have, if she picked up the fossils. i couldn't believe myself. she must've been frightened, yet i hadn't even considered . .

"do not worry. sometimes we carelessly forget about our partners, but that does not mean they hate us for it."

i whip around, seeing gurkinn looking at me pointedly. i let his words sink in.

"ah, thank you dear", he says to di, who had given him the fossils. "see, i've been briefly hired by ambrette's fossil expo so in turn i can see them revive a pokemon. but, i think i have enough, don't you?" he sets his tool down. "and this seems to be a pretty good spot for a chat. so, have at it."

di glances back at me, and i remember what we came here for. i step forward to stand beside her and take out the rainbow stone, holding it out to gurkinn. "would you, perhaps, know what this is?"

he picks it from me and brings it up to his face. "ahh, indeed i do. but if it's an official name you're after, i'm afraid i can't give you that. only thing that's been named is the mega stones."

"mega . . stones?"

"right you are, mrs. champion." gurkinn returns the stone to me. "a mega stone and that stone there are the things needed to mega evolve a pokemon."

there was that term again. "so you know of it?"

"of course", he scoffs. "family's been around long enough to witness it. i actually have a so-many-greats grandfather who discovered it. he was the first to mega evolve a pokemon."

i glance at di. "would you mind explaining mega evolution?"

"well sure. anything for a champion and a renowned professor."

"renowned . .?"

"of course."

di goes straight to laughing. "how are you sure he's not just some side-street professor i picked up as an excuse?"

"what else would he be here for, dear?"

"moral support?"

"t-thank you for your kind words", i offer, glaring at di.

gurkinn nods. "i actually heard from my granddaughter that you received quite the batch of pokemon recently. was this little one a part of it?"

i look over to see he's pointing at squirtle, who smiles happily. "yes, she was."

"keeper, that one. but lets get back on topic. you want to know about mega evolution . ."

"mega evolution is a hidden act of evolution available after all stages of evolution are achieved to a single pokemon. as i said earlier, you need the stone like the one you possess, professor, as well as a mega stone for the pokemon. once the pokemon has mega evolved, you will find that its stats will have raised considerably, beginning with attack power. however, mega evolution is not something that lasts forever. the pokemon will stay in a mega evolved state for a battle at most, changing back to it's final-evolved form after." he pauses for a few moments before adding, "regrettably, that is all i know. questions?"

"are mega stones tri-colored", diantha asks.

gurkinn snaps his fingers. "indeed."

"my aunt found this stone near geosenge", i chime in. "do you think there might be more there?"

"well i wouldn't be surprised. after all, geosenge is a town typically shrouded in mystery. but i don't think it would be the only place. i found my own stone in anistar, as well as korrina's."

this peaked di's interests. "korrina can mega evolve a pokemon as well?"

he shakes his head. "oh no, i don't believe that she's ready yet. i actually haven't given it to her. but when the time is right, i'm sure she will be able to."

"which pokemon do you have that can mega evolve?"

"a lucario. though, if you are asking for a demonstration, with those science gears turning in your head, i'm afraid i cannot give it to you. if i had lucario with me, he would be helping me with fossils. instead, he chose to stay with the grandkids." he threw his head back in laughter. "damn shame, too. but i suppose pokemon have their own interests, same as us."

he bends down and tosses the both of us a fossil, picking the rest up himself and putting them in a bag. "afraid that's all that can fit. would you mind helping me carry some?" at our nods, he heaves the bag over his shoulders and picks up the pick-axe. "now, let's go get some sunlight before it all dries up."

i pick up squirtle before following, holding her close while she cradles the fossil. di is right behind me, having previously returned gardevoir.

"you might still be on alert", she mutters to me. "they might not have left fully."

i turn rigid but give her a nod.

"on a lighter note", she adds, "gurkinn happened to think you and squirtle were partners. and you didn't correct him. the little one's more than a research project, hmm?"

a little smile forms on my face. "yeah, i guess so."

"good. be proud of it."


End file.
